First Reading – Ezekiel 37:21-28
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will take the children of Israel from among the nations
to which they have come,
and gather them from all sides to bring them back to their land.
I will make them one nation upon the land,
in the mountains of Israel,
and there shall be one prince for them all.
Never again shall they be two nations,
and never again shall they be divided into two kingdoms.
No longer shall they defile themselves with their idols,
their abominations, and all their transgressions.
I will deliver them from all their sins of apostasy,
and cleanse them so that they may be my people
and I may be their God.
My servant David shall be prince over them,
and there shall be one shepherd for them all;
they shall live by my statutes and carefully observe my decrees.
They shall live on the land that I gave to my servant Jacob,
the land where their fathers lived;
they shall live on it forever,
they, and their children, and their children’s children,
with my servant David their prince forever.
I will make with them a covenant of peace;
it shall be an everlasting covenant with them,
and I will multiply them, and put my sanctuary among them forever.
My dwelling shall be with them;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD,
who make Israel holy,
when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever.
R. (see 10d) The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
proclaim it on distant isles, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd his flock.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
The LORD shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the LORD’s blessings:
The grain, the wine, and the oil,
the sheep and the oxen.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
Verse Before The Gospel – Ezekiel 18:31
Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the LORD,
and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.
Gospel – John 11:45-56
Many of the Jews who had come to Mary
and seen what Jesus had done began to believe in him.
But some of them went to the Pharisees
and told them what Jesus had done.
So the chief priests and the Pharisees
convened the Sanhedrin and said,
“What are we going to do?
This man is performing many signs.
If we leave him alone, all will believe in him,
and the Romans will come
and take away both our land and our nation.”
But one of them, Caiaphas,
who was high priest that year, said to them,
“You know nothing,
nor do you consider that it is better for you
that one man should die instead of the people,
so that the whole nation may not perish.”
He did not say this on his own,
but since he was high priest for that year,
he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation,
and not only for the nation,
but also to gather into one the dispersed children of God.
So from that day on they planned to kill him.
So Jesus no longer walked about in public among the Jews,
but he left for the region near the desert,
to a town called Ephraim,
and there he remained with his disciples.
Now the Passover of the Jews was near,
and many went up from the country to Jerusalem
before Passover to purify themselves.
They looked for Jesus and said to one another
as they were in the temple area, “What do you think?
That he will not come to the feast?”
Have you been afflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic? Perhaps you are now under lockdown, or in self-quarantine? I encourage you to read this article I wrote on my thoughts about the coronavirus and its historic impact on the Catholic Church: the temporary suspension of Holy Mass and the Sacraments. My Reflection tackles the deeper meaning of these events for Catholics—in the light of the Third of the Seven Sorrows of Mary. So wherever you are in the world, this Post may serve as a source of strength and faith in this uncertain and trying time.
Act of Spiritual Communion
If you are unable to physically receive Holy Communion, especially in the midst of this pandemic, make a solemn recitation of this Prayer for Spiritual Communion by Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori.
As the Season of Lent nears its culmination, deepen your spiritual preparation through these Reflections. Now is a suitable moment to read them for the first time, or to revisit these Posts, for those of you who have previously perused them.
The Second Sorrow of Mary and the Uncertainties in Life
The Third Sorrow of Mary and the Mysteries of God’s Will
The Fourth Sorrow of Mary and the Types of Catholics
The Fifth Sorrow of Mary and Consoling Jesus and His Mother
The Sixth Sorrow of Mary and the Blood and Water from the Side of Jesus
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Thank you for sharing with everyone. God will bring us out of this situation if only we pray for everyone asking God for his grace and protection. Thank you again. Vivat Jesus!